The Ranch That Time Didn’t Tame

Travel

Audio By Carbonatix

As you weasel your way, more than likely unwillingly, into your fifties, your twilight years, you rely on nostalgia more than anything to awaken your senses.  

Prevagen might do that, too, but, I found my Prevagen at Rocking Horse Ranch in Highland, NY.

The Catskills used to be the spot for summer, drivable love, with a few Jewish comedians like Jackie Mason, hammering out their bits on stage at the draw of a summer day, with hills and sunset complete. Rocking Horse Ranch is still the feel of a summer Catskill Eve, but with horses, and cows and pony rides and lots and lots of yeehaw and comfort food.

I visited RHR with my daughter and 18-month-old granddaughter with the greatest of expectations, and they did not disappoint. We ventured up mid-week an hour from NYC or northern NJ, and this dude ranch getaway, founded in 1958 on Memorial Day Weekend has remained, with fabulous upkeep just as it was “broken in” like a new saddle, by Toolie and Gloria Turk, like it was a zillion tumbleweeds away.

Bucolic in aesthetic only, the ranch is a little part of Dodge in upstate NY, with indoor and outdoor pool, arcade, huge, yummy dining room, over 115 horses, snow tubing, skiing (in the winter), fun, games, bingo and constant down home, hoe-down love.

I think what impressed me more than the cocktails and snack buffet and daily cruise-like agenda was the compadre the staff-folk had for their jobs. They were the nicest, most smiley, most helpful, most solicitous wranglers this side of the Mississippi.    

And clean….even the hooves of the muddy western horses were clean!  Everywhere was clean, clean, clean…from stalls to bedrooms to bingo cards.    

But my heart is always with the livestock, and what happy livestock they were.

RHR delivers a hands-on experience at their home, with animals cuddling, kissing, and just loving on their human counterpart. Kids giggling, feeding horses snacks as they passed in their posse to go from the upstairs working barn to the day-is-over paddock across the street.

RHR is all-inclusive, three meals and snacks daily, so Mom and Dad, there is no worrying about what to feed a whiny kid for breakfast, lunch, dinner or boredom snack. They will not be hungry nor bored here, just looking for the next activity: a trail ride, wagon ride, pony ride, arcade, tube, or swim and whatever else might be onboard for the day,

I loved our visit to RHR so much,  my daughter had to tell me, the 58-year-old to calm down.  “Mom, I promise we’ll go back and you can kiss that horsey again.”

And that says it all.

Saddle up and ride 'em again, cowboy.

Find out more:

rockinghorseranch.com